General Etiquette > All In A Day's Work

How to politely discourage being called "Kiddo" in the workplace?

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RooRoo:
OP, for some reason, I woke up this morning thinking about your post.

My first reaction was to say "Don't get your knickers in a twist," but that's based on how I use "kiddo" and "sweetie." (I don't say "love.") For me, it's shorthand for "You're nice."

This probably isn't relevant: What came into my mind this morning was how I used to react to the words "girl" and "gal." In my 20s, I felt they smacked of both ageism and sexism, and got all wound up about them. But the people using them were innocent of harm, and suffered through a few lectures from me.  ::) Bless their patience!

So if the terms are common where you are, don't waste your time protesting; let it roll off your back. I would also ignore it if you otherwise have a good working re1ationship with these folks. As a Realtor, you don't want to burn any bridges.

But if you are genuinely being looked down on or condescended to, or even if you just want it to stop, I think the best way to handle it is with humor. Your tone can range from gentle to extremely pointed!

Some suggestions, since I'm feeling creative:

Love:
"Does your spouse/SO know you call me that?"
"Does this mean I should expect an engagement ring?" (But not if your creep-senses are tingling)
"Oh, that is so sixties!" (When Beatle-mania first swept the US, little girls like me used lots of Brit-speak, including "luv.")

Sweetie: "Just call me Raspberry - and watch out for the thorns!"
"That's me, half poodle, half pit bull!"
"Sweetie?! What are you on/drinking?"

Kiddo: "Good thing the grade school closed early so I could be here..."
"Now excuse me, I need my binkie/pacifier and a nap."
"Don't let it get out that I'm your kid! They might accuse us of conflict of interest!"

I hope this is helpful.  :)

girlmusic:
I once had an officemate who called me "girl". Yes, he was 30 years older than me, but no that was not okay.  One day I got really sick of it and looked him right in the eye and said in my coldest, calm, unemotional voice "My name is girlmusic, and that is how I prefer to be addressed. Please do so in the future". He never did it again - I think it was the combination of tone and formal word choice.

BeagleMommy:
To me, nicknames of this sort are an attempt to either breed familiarity or are an attempt to put me in my place (so to speak).

The supervisor of a print shop in a former job used to refer to all women as "Baby".  After repeated attempts to get him to stop I finally said "The only person in this world allowed to call me Baby is my DH and he wouldn't be too pleased to hear you do it.".  He stopped.

I would start by saying, very calmly "My name is Oopsie".

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